North Ridgeville defeats visting Beachwood

The Rangers were rampant in their attack on the visiting Bison of Beachwood. North Ridgeville improved to 6-1after defeating Beachwood, 4-2. Chris Lillstrung has the recap.

North Ridgeville was not lacking in attacking quality Sept. 7 against visiting Beachwood.

And fortunately for the Rangers in what could have wound up a frustrating evening, the endproduct was there as well.

Mady Rosado netted a first-half brace and Kali Baker delivered the goahead strike in the 56th minute as North Ridgeville dispatched the previously unbeaten Bison, 4-2, in a crosstown nonconference match.

The Rangers (6-1) continued their strong overall formwith a clinical offensive-third display, generating 23 shots on target and, with their combination play, dominant possession for large stretches.

Despite that, though, North Ridgeville also found itself locked in a 2-2 stalemate approaching the hour mark.

After the aforementioned goal by Baker and a strike with 58 seconds left by standout freshman attacker Bella Antonio, Rangers coach Chris Moore was pleased to see his side remain persistent to the point of grabbing the result.

“Yeah, it’s just one of those games,” saidMoore, who it was announced at halftime was marking his wedding anniversary Sept. 7 to warm applause from the home faithful. “Defensively, they were very solid. (Beachwood goalkeeper Madison Prince) was very good. She did a great job.

“We had to kind of alter it a little bit because of that. We moved some things around and kind of figured out the better way to break that down. And eventually, it kind of worked in our favor in the second half.”

North Ridgeville twice fought back from falling behind to go into halftime in a 2-2 match. Rosado was sprung by a lovely diagonal ball by Abby Bernhardt in the 22ndminute, and the junior banged in the rebound off a bar rattler from distance in the 34th for her 10th goal of the fall.

The Bison (4-1-2) had twice grabbed the lead in the opening 40 through a Romi Roth strike in the 13thminute and a Sydney Sarver finish in the 29th.

But the Rangers worked a well-executed diagonal game with service and runs as they maximized possession.

Baker struck at the back post for the goahead finish in the 56th, and Antonio contributed the final margin with her 11th goal of the campaign in the final minute.

Bernhardt and fellow senior LindseyMoore had fine matches in the middle of the park as facilitators, and Antonio was outstanding with her workrate as a touchlineto-touchline striker.

“That’s our dribble penetration on the angle and working the combination off that,” Moore said of his side’s strong diagonal work. “And then also, the diagonal movement and service. So it’s kind of a three-pronged attack.”